My husband and I had an odd little moment like that over the weekend. All the kids were away (which almost never happens!) and on Saturday evening we decided to take the dog for an impromptu walk.

It occurred to me then, this could have been our reality.

It got us to thinking about what might have been if we’d met ‘at the traditional time’ rather than as a second time around couple. Next month will be our second wedding anniversary. So really, a lot of ‘young marrieds’ would be doing just what we were doing – taking the dog for a leisurely stroll on a weekend evening. Sans children, because at that point, children may not even be a reality yet.

We had a few giggles over the possibilities and talked about the early days of our first marriages. Then came to two conclusions:

If we had met earlier in life, we wouldn’t have been right for each other. Back then, I was very much a party girl, and very lost. God still had a lot of work to do in me. We wouldn’t have looked twice at each other. Well, actually we agreed, we both would have looked twice, but then dismissed each other as so not right.

If we had met and married at any other stage in our lives, we wouldn’t have the depth of relationship that we have now, as boy oh boy have we negotiated some storms and learnt a lot about ourselves and each other in our short time together.

I know we can’t change what’s passed. Nor would I want to. But it was nice to think out the possibilities and to realise that it all came together just as it should have. Thank God for His perfect timing.

This is such an interesting thing to think about! I’ve often thought about if we had started our family later and if I had gone on with my education or career further. But in the end, I’m grateful to be where I am, and I think I am a better person because of it. Great post, Abbie!

My husband and I recently had a similar conversation, too, though it was more like a what-would-have-happened-if-who-we-were-then-met-who-we-are-now kind of thing. We married young, at 21 and 22. We are completely different people now (married 11 years and counting). We agreed that if we had not met until now, we probably would have been completely different people from the people we are today, too. And we probably wouldn’t have really liked each other much. So, for us, meeting young and naive and idealistic was a good thing. 🙂